Passions
by julesmonster
Summary: Why does Kurt hesitate when he tells Blaine he loves him? Strong Spoiler Alert for the entire season 2 Finale. Puck/Kurt Slash. One-shot.


**Passions**

**By Julesmonster**

**Disclaimer:** All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

**Spoiler Alert: **If you haven't seen the season 2 finale, do not read this story. It gives pretty much _everything_ away.

**A/N:** Anyone else find the scene at the end of the season finale between Kurt and Blaine a little… off? The way he hesitates before answering Blaine seems a little fishy to me. So of course, I had drop my other stories to blow that three second hesitation all out of proportion and write a little one-shot about it. Hope you enjoy! Jules

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Kurt sat across from Blaine in their favorite coffee shop telling his boyfriend everything that happened in New York at Nationals, including Finn and Rachel's disastrous kiss and Jesse's harping, Santana's hissy fit and the oppressive silence in the airplane on the way home. He also told him about the things that made losing bearable, like having breakfast at Tiffany's, flying in a plane for the first time, and singing on a Broadway stage. And then it happened.

"I love you," Blaine said and Kurt froze in the act of swallowing his half-caf soy latte with extra foam.

There was a moment that stretched longer than it should have done. Kurt's response should have been right there on the tip of his tongue fighting to get out. Instead, he had to force it past his lips and he was sure that his conflicted feelings were obvious, that it showed on his face, but Blaine didn't seem to pick up on Kurt's unease and so when he finally was able to say, "I love you too," Blaine just blinked and gave Kurt a small smile.

Kurt rushed on, "You know, when you stop and think about it, Kurt Hummel has had a pretty good year." And then Sam and Mercedes arrived and Kurt was quick to change the focus of Blaine's attention. Once their friends had gone again, talk turned to other subjects and the rest of the afternoon went quickly. But even as they searched for the perfect sheet music for Blaine's audition for the summer show at Six Flags, Kurt's mind kept replaying that moment of hesitation and wondering if Blaine had noticed.

Later that night, Kurt lay in his bed and wondered what he was going to do.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

"Get your sweet little ass in gear, Princess," Puck said from behind Kurt, his voice a little closer to Kurt's ear than was strictly necessary. They were all lined up to load their luggage onto the bus taking them to the airport and the plane that would carry them to Nationals. Of course, Kurt had a little more luggage than most which made shifting forward in the line a little more awkward than for most.

"I'm going as quickly as I can," Kurt replied in a haughty voice, trying to ignore the way Puck's breath on his neck made him shiver.

"What have you got in those bags?" Puck wondered.

Kurt looked over his shoulder at the football player. "Only the essentials. Five pairs of shoes, twelve outfits appropriate for an assortment of settings, socks and underwear, five sets of pajamas, a plush terrycloth robe, slippers, skin care products, cosmetics, hair care products…"

Puck shooed Kurt forward again. "Fine, I get it. You have a lot of shit you need to help you look pretty." He rolled his eyes. "Sheesh."

Kurt was the next to the last in line, with only Puck behind him and soon enough it was his turn to hand his bags over to Mr. Schue and the driver. Puck's single duffle bag didn't take long to load, so he was right behind Kurt as he climbed the steps onto the handicap accessible bus. Of course, there was only one seat left unoccupied by that time and Kurt groaned when he realized he would be forced to share it with Puck.

"Mind if I take the window, Princess?" Puck asked.

Kurt waved him in. "Be my guest."

Soon they were waving goodbye to their parents and on their way. Neither Kurt nor Puck talked for the first hour of the two hour trip to the airport. But when Puck got bored with playing angry birds on his phone, he looked over to see what Kurt was doing. Kurt was obviously texting. And from the flush on his cheeks and the way he shifted uncomfortably in the seat, Puck suspect that pure innocent Kurt Hummel might just be sexting.

"Lemme see that," Puck said as he pulled the phone out of Kurt's hand. He read the text out loud even while he held Kurt away so he couldn't snatch the phone back. "I miss you already. I miss the way you taste and the way you sigh into our kisses…" Puck looked at Kurt. "What is this shit? You _seriously_ need to get laid if this is what turns you on."

"Give me my phone back," Kurt hissed. Puck did, but not before sending a reply. "Oh my God! You told him I want to suck his cock?"

Puck smirked at him. "That's a _**real **_sext."

"There's more to Blaine's and my relationship than sex and sexting," Kurt huffed. He groaned as he tried to explain by text to a very confused Blaine what had happened. When Blaine said he had to go, Kurt glared at Puck. "You have just made him think I'm some sort of lunatic. I hope you're happy."

"You deserve so much better than that hobbit," Puck shrugged.

Kurt was flabbergasted. "Better than Blaine? There is no one better than Blaine Anderson!" Kurt took a deep breath to keep from screaming and calling their squabble to the attention of their teammates. "Blaine is smart, funny, talented, charming, and best of all, he actually likes me!"

Puck shrugged. "He hogged all the solos when you were in the Warblers. He only let you sing a duet in the end because he wanted in your pants. He didn't even notice you until he got dumped by his Gap pal. Oh, and he looks like one of those fuzzy headed troll dolls."

Kurt's mouth gaped open. How did Puck know about the Gap kid? Or the solos? "My dad likes him," Kurt said lamely.

Puck chuckled. "Now there's a reason to date a guy. If I dated the girls my mother wanted me to date, I'd be pre-engaged to Rachel by now." They both shuddered at the thought.

"Be that as it may," Kurt said, "I have no desire to become a man-whore just to rebel against my father. I care what he thinks of my boyfriends."

"I'm not sayin' you hafta be easier than Santana," Puck said with a frown. "I'm just sayin' that your dad shouldn't be the deciding factor when it comes to who you date. There should be fiery passion, and if you two are still texting about kisses, I somehow doubt that there's much heat at all between you."

"We're just taking things slow," Kurt muttered.

Puck shrugged again and turned back to his own phone and decided to play spades instead. Kurt, sitting beside him was silent as he stared at his phone, as if it might have answers to the questions that were suddenly floating through his brain.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

"I hate you Noah Puckerman," Kurt muttered. Through some sort of cosmic joke, Kurt had been seated with Puck on the plane as well. And of course, their seats were separated from the rest of the team. They were in the very last row of seats on the small plane. It only had two seats on one side of the aisle and one seat on the other. The man in the seat across the aisle from them was snoring and the couple in the row in front of them was totally engrossed in the boring in-flight movie, leaving Kurt free to vent his displeasure.

"What did I do?" Puck asked. He'd been drawing mustaches on the people in the magazine in the seat pocket in front of him.

Kurt glared at him. "You… you think sex is more important than emotions," Kurt accused.

Puck thought about that. "Not more important, but just as important. At first anyway. There's got to be some reason you want to go to bed with that person, otherwise you might as well be BFFs and leave it at that. I mean, a relationship is a lot of work and there's got to be a serious reward there to make that work worthwhile. That's why makeup sex is always so hot."

Kurt frowned. That made sense, damn it! Puck wasn't supposed to be right about this. And without Blaine here to prove Puck wrong, he had no real argument to put forward in the debate.

"What do you know about relationships," Kurt huffed. It was a lame comeback, but it was all he had.

"More than you," Puck said. "I've actually had a couple."

"You're calling that mess between you and Santana a relationship?" Kurt scoffed.

"That? Nah," Puck said. "But I wasn't always a sex shark. There was Teresa, this girl from the summer camp my mom made me go to. It was for problem kids. Teresa was a real badass. Unfortunately, once summer was up, she had to go back to Texas. Then there was… yeah, but that doesn't matter. Things with Mercedes and me or Lauren and me may not have worked out, but I count those as relationships. And Quinn may not have cared about me, but I cared about her, so…."

"Okay, I get it," Kurt said. "You've dated a few girls, and we don't need to rehash the numerous sex partners. You are the relationship expert between the two of us."

Puck grinned. "Glad you recognize my superiority, Princess."

"Noah…" Kurt growled. "Do you have a point in all this?"

"Just that I don't really think Blaine can ever match your fire," Puck said. "If anything, every time I see you together, it's like he's putting out your flame like a wet blanket. He's just as restricting as that school was."

Kurt stared at his hands in his lap. "I needed that school. It kept me safe when I needed it."

"But you came out of hiding," Puck said. "I just think Blaine is safe, so you hang on to him."

"It's not like there's a long line of gay boys in Lima Ohio," Kurt growled, letting anger replace his earlier insecurity. "And even if there are, they aren't asking me to be their boyfriends."

"How do you know that there isn't someone out there just dying to kiss you?" Puck asked. "I mean, not everyone is ready to come out and announce their gayness or bi-ness to the whole world, at least not without a damn good reason."

Kurt's mind instantly went to Karofsky. But if David Karofsky was gay, there just might be others who were still closeted. Kurt shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I'm with Blaine. His kisses are great. And I… really care about him."

Puck shrugged and went back to his doodling. They both sat in silence for almost an hour. Kurt's mind was filled with even more questions than before.

"I just don't think I understand," Kurt finally said. "I mean, kissing Blaine is great. We… get aroused, but we've decided to take things slow. I don't see how that's a bad thing."

Puck sighed. "It's not bad. But ask yourself this, how hard is it to wait? Do you struggle not to take things just a little bit further?"

"I…"

Puck shut the magazine and put up his tray table, and then he lifted the armrest between their seats and turned to Kurt. Without word or warning, one hand wrapped around the nape of Kurt's neck, warm and strong, while the other went to his waist. Then Puck was pulling Kurt forward into a kiss. Kurt was too shocked to protest or participate either one for the first few seconds. And then it was a toss-up which way he would go for another couple seconds, but the truth was that there was just something about the heat of Puck's hands, the strength of his arms, and the gentle teasing of his lips that Kurt just couldn't resist.

Kurt groaned into Puck's kiss when the larger boy's tongue finally, finally, came out to play. He seemed to melt into his arms, Kurt's arms sliding to Puck's back to pull him even closer as their tongues parried and thrust like two swordsmen. It was wet and wild and nothing like the kisses that Kurt shared with Blaine.

And then Puck was pulling away and Kurt tried to follow his lips for just a moment before his mind registered that someone was talking to them.

"You need to return your seat to its upright position," the flight attendant told them with a smile. "We'll be landing in just a few minutes."

Kurt nodded and did as he was told. He stared that the back of the seat in front of him for the rest of the flight, not able to even acknowledge Puck's presence beside him.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Kurt plastered on a fake smile as they left the plane and met up with the rest of the team. By the time they made it to the luggage carousel, Kurt was able to actually put the entire incident out of his mind. Or at least put it to the side so he could respond intelligently to Mercedes' questions. In fact he made it the entire first day without doing anything stupid, like blurt out to Mercedes that Puck had kissed him. That would not have gone over well. Of course, every time Kurt saw Puck, the other boy always seemed to be watching. It was really freaking him out, but he wasn't sure if it was the I-have-a-creepy-stalker kind of freak out or the I-want-him-so-bad-I-can't-think-straight kind.

And then Finn took Rachel to dinner. Tina, Lauren, Quinn, Santana, Brittany, Artie and Mike, unwilling to wait for Kurt to change outfits three times, left for dinner without him. And Kurt wasn't really sure where Sam went but Mercedes told Kurt that she had a headache and was going to stay in the room. Of course, this meant that Kurt was all alone walking through the halls of the hotel trying to decide if he felt sure enough of himself to brave the streets of Manhattan at night by himself.

"Headed for dinner, Princess?" a familiar voice called out to Kurt just before he reached the entrance to the hotel. He didn't even slow his stride, but Puck was right beside him in seconds. "You shouldn't go out by yourself."

"You shouldn't just kiss people like that," Kurt muttered.

"Where would you like to go?" Puck asked. "I saw a cool looking diner type place when we were out earlier. I think it was over by the Lion King."

"Junior's?" Kurt asked. "I suppose that will do. You should like it at least. They apparently have really big portions and huge desserts."

They walked together from the hotel to the restaurant in silence. It wasn't until they were seated and had ordered that they spoke again. It was strained at first, but eventually they settled into an easy conversation about the things they had seen that day and their impressions of those sites. They enjoyed their food—Puck had ordered the kosher beef brisket served on potato pancakes and Kurt had a burger—and they both decided to have dessert. But when they saw the size of other people's desserts, they thought maybe they could split something. Since Junior's is famous for their cheesecake, that's what they ordered. Soon enough they were staring at a slice of cheesecake at least six inches high and five inches wide and covered in strawberries.

"Dig in," Puck encouraged as he grabbed his fork and started in on the treat. "Mmmm."

Kurt took his first bite and moaned in absolute ecstasy. "My god. That is good."

Kurt's groan of pleasure sent dirty thoughts straight to Puck's mind and suddenly he didn't want to let Kurt continue to avoid talking about the kiss. "You sound really hot when you moan like that, like someone's under the table trying to suck your brain out through your cock."

Kurt swallowed with a little difficulty as that picture flooded his brain. "I… why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" Puck asked with his most sexy leer. "Why did I kiss you? Why did I mention your orgasmic noises? Or why do I think you need more passion in your life?"

"Yes, all of that," Kurt said.

Puck sat back in his chair and watched as Kurt continued to pick at the cheesecake nervously. "Well, because I think you are a seriously fierce dude, Princess, and you deserve a seriously fierce boyfriend, one who will keep that fire in your eyes." Puck smiled when he saw that fire in Kurt's eyes. "Like right now. That fire is only there when you're really passionate about something. Anger, jealousy, intense pleasure, excitement… those are the things that make you come alive. Blaine can't give you those things."

Kurt huffed, but it lacked conviction. He knew it was true. He loved Blaine, but he couldn't really say he was in love with him, even though he really wanted to be. He wanted to feel excited just because Blaine was nearby. He wanted to feel jealousy when Blaine stared at a hot guy. He wanted to feel passion. But the truth was Puck was right; Blaine was safe and comfortable.

Kurt stared at Puck who was finishing off the rich dessert. "And who can give me those things?" The question was no more than a whisper and it was barely audible in the noisy restaurant, but Puck heard him.

"I think you know the answer to that," Puck said and, for just a moment, Kurt felt like he was falling into Puck's hazel eyes.

Kurt's heart was pounding and his palms were sweating. "I… I need to use the men's room." Kurt stood and headed towards the back of the restaurant. When he reached the sanctuary of the bathroom, he headed for a stall and put the seat lid down so he could sit. With his head in his hands, Kurt had to take deep breaths to control himself or else he would burst out in hysterical laughter. Noah "Puck" Puckerman was hitting on him. At least, he was pretty sure that was what was happening. It seemed impossible that the self-proclaimed badass would be into Kurt, but he had already kissed him once.

What the hell was going on?

When Kurt returned to the table, Puck had already paid for their dinner. When Kurt tried to give him money, the football player growled—an honest to god growl—at him, so Kurt let the matter drop. Instead of heading directly back to the hotel, Puck took Kurt's hand and they wandered through Schubert Alley* and looked at all the posters on display there.

"If you could go see any of these shows, which would it be?" Puck asked.

Kurt had to think about it. These posters represented most of the major shows currently playing on Broadway and that was quite a selection. "Well, How to Succeed is a great show, but I'm not sure I could get past Harry Potter singing and dancing." Puck laughed at that. "Anything Goes is a classic and you can never go wrong with Chicago or Phantom. But…"

"But?" Puck encouraged.

"But I'm dying to see Wicked," Kurt admitted. "It has the all time best soundtrack for any musical ever. Okay, that's not really true, but it's so great and the story is really cool."

"And the chick in it has a green face," Puck said as he studied the poster.

Kurt laughed. "Yes, she does. It's the story of the witches in the Wizard of Oz: Galinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch. They are the epitome of frenemies. They fight over the same boy and their ambitions, but in the end they really care about each other."

"Like you and Rachel?" Puck asked.

Kurt thought about that. "Sort of. Though we don't really fight over Finn anymore. I'm not even sure what I was thinking crushing on him like I did. I mean, he's cute and all, in that big dopey way of his, but… that's all he has to offer really. He's my step-brother and your friend, so I'm not trying to insult him, but he gets away with so much based on his lost puppy looks."

"I know what you mean," Puck said. "He treats his girls worse than I do, but no one calls him on it. They all just feel sorry for him because he looks so pathetic."

"Exactly," Kurt said. "I mean, what other guy could get away with playing two girls off of each other for two years? Not that I don't think they did some crummy things to him, but he's done some crummy things to them too, and they all seem to forget that and want him anyway."

"How'd you break free?" Puck wondered. "Finn's usually pretty good at keeping people clinging to hope forever."

Kurt took a deep breath. "Last year, when Carole and he first moved in, Finn said some pretty hateful things to me. He tried to make up for it, and I forgave him, but after that… well my feelings for him died that night. And now, he's like an annoying brother more than anything."

Puck's hand, still entwined with Kurt's, squeezed and they soon walked back towards Times Square. They passed the Minskoff Theater and the Marquis Theater and Kurt told Puck about some of the shows that had played in those theaters over the years. While Kurt knew that Puck wasn't that interested, Puck was still polite and asked him questions.

They went to the M&M's store on Puck's suggestion and were soon laughing at all the gadgets and gizmos available to dispense the small candies. Puck bought one that was a hot rod with the red and green M&M's in it, while Kurt went for the touristy and got the Statue of Liberty with the green M&M. Then, of course, they had to get candy to put into the dispensers and they had 22 colors from which to choose. Kurt went with a selection of his favorite colors that he couldn't normally get, like teal, pink, purple, aqua, light purple, dark pink, cream and white. Puck, surprisingly, selected colors to match his hot rod: red yellow black and silver.

After that, they actually headed back to the hotel, still laughing at each other's purchases. Again Puck took Kurt's hand. Kurt, on the one hand, was a little unsure of what exactly was happening between them. On the other hand, he was reveling in the fact that they were in a place where two men _**could **_hold hands without too many odd looks.

They reached the hotel and went up to their floor together, but before Kurt could head towards their room, Puck pulled him to the stairwell. "What?"

"I just wanted to tell you I had a really good time with you, Kurt," Puck said. "I mean that. I'm going to kiss you now, and I know that you probably don't want anyone else to know, so I brought you here. But I really want to kiss you goodnight."

Kurt's belly flipped like an acrobat and nodded dumbly. Puck gave him a smile and then brought his lips to Kurt's. It was like the rest of the world disappeared and the only thing Kurt knew was the feel of Puck pressing him to the wall, the taste of Puck on his tongue, and the deep longing to make this moment last forever. He could feel Puck's erection against his hip, but he did nothing to escalate the encounter and Kurt was both grateful and disappointed. He really wanted… more… everything. But he also knew that he was too confused about everything to really make that decision.

Time seemed to lose meaning as they continued to devour each other. Puck's hands somehow ended up against Kurt's bare back, and Kurt had one hand on Puck's shoulder and the other running through the stripe of Puck's Mohawk. Before things could get out of hand, Puck pulled away and Kurt let out an embarrassing whimper.

Puck chuckled and kissed Kurt again, chastely this time. "We need to get back before people start to worry."

Kurt nodded but he was still feeling more than a little dazed. "Yeah… yes. I…"

Puck gave Kurt one final kiss and stepped away so that Kurt could straighten his clothes. "I know. No pressure. No commitments for now. Just… use this time away to think about it. And maybe we can hang out again. Then you can make a decision when we get home. Okay?"

Kurt swallowed and nodded again. He took Puck's hand and they walked back to the room together. Puck let go to open the door and Kurt felt a little lonely all of a sudden, even though the room was filled with their teammates.

"So, where'd you guys go?" Artie asked.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Kurt spent most of the night mulling over everything that Puck had said to him and everything they had done. Some part of him feared that it was all some elaborate prank, but most of him knew that Puck wasn't like that anymore. Mostly, he ended up wallowing in guilt over the fact that he felt more from kissing Puck in a stairwell than he did from Blaine jerking him off. How wrong was that? The fact that with any encouragement whatsoever from Puck and he would have thrown his virginity at the boy was shameful in a whole host of ways.

He tossed and turned through the night, only sleeping fitfully. By dawn, he was ready to get out of that room and do something, anything, to take his mind off of everything. That was how he ended up coming up with the idea to go have breakfast at Tiffany's with Rachel. And of course, that had led to them breaking into the Gershwin Theater to sing on the stage of Wicked with Rachel. It was like a dream come true and was more than sufficient to take his mind off his troubles for a time.

When they got back to the room and saw the others all gathered and depressed over the news that Schue was planning on staying in New York, instead of being upset, Kurt's eyes automatically went to Puck to see how the other boy was handling the news. Their eyes met and there was a moment of shared understanding and then Rachel was pulling him over to the bed to sit and get the whole story from Mercedes and Quinn. The moment was broken but Kurt's mind was once again filled with thoughts of Puck. And Blaine. But honestly, mostly thoughts of Puck. How messed up was that?

Of course, Schue showed up and told them that he wasn't leaving and everything went back to normal and they all spent the rest of the day writing the songs for their performance. Kurt continued to sneak looks at Puck, but there was no time to be alone. Once the songs were written, they had to be rehearsed. And when that was one, they were all so tired that they just fell into bed. Kurt didn't even have the energy for his full skincare routine.

The first round of Nationals was the next day, and of course they didn't make it to the finals. But that was okay, just like Kurt had told Blaine, because it had been a great trip. Finals weren't until the next day, and even though they weren't participating, the trip had been planned in case they made it all the way, so they basically had the day free. Almost everyone split off into groups to explore the sites they had missed on the first day. Only Rachel, Finn and Schue stayed to see the final competition.

Puck pulled Kurt aside early that morning and told him that he had a surprise form him, and that he should dress nice and meet him at the entrance of the hotel at noon. Kurt was puzzled, but he didn't argue. Instead, Kurt went to breakfast with Mercedes and a short shopping spree before returning to the hotel to prepare for whatever craziness Puck had planned for him. Kurt stepped off the elevator at precisely noon, just in time to see Puck rush through the front door with a wide smile on his face.

"Ready to go Princess?" Puck asked. He took a quick look around and then placed a kiss on Kurt's cheek.

"I am," Kurt said. He looked over Puck's attire and was pleased to see that he was wearing Dockers and a light green button down shirt that brought out the green in his hazel eyes. "You clean up well, Noah."

"Thanks," Puck said with a smile. "You look pretty great, too."

Puck took Kurt's hand and led him out of the hotel. Kurt let him lead them up town for a block before he asked, "So, where exactly are you taking me?"

"Well, first we're going to have lunch," Puck said. "And then after… Well, that's a surprise."

Puck would not tell him the surprise no matter what Kurt said for the next hour and a half as they ate lunch a quaint little restaurant on 49th street. After they finished eating, Kurt insisted the Puck let him pay this time, and the other boy shrugged and gave in. Then they were back on the street and heading up town on Broadway again.

"Did you know that there's a booth in Times Square where you can get discount same-day Broadway tickets?" Puck asked. "You just have to get there really early and hope that they don't run out before you get to the front of the line."

Kurt stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, pulling Puck to a halt and making some guy behind them swear. "Did you…?"

Puck held up two tickets and Kurt snatched them from his hands. "Oh my god! Wicked?"

"The guy said that the seats aren't the best because the view is limited, but they are right up front on the left side of the stage," Puck said. "And I got the last two tickets that were together in one spot, so I think that was pretty good."

Kurt threw his arms around Puck and hugged him. "Thank you!" And then he let go just enough to kiss Puck. It was a hot and hungry kiss that Kurt might have let get out of hand if Puck hadn't pilled away and reminded him that the show started at 2.

From there on, Kurt was pulling Puck along in a rush to get to the theater.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

"Dude, those flying monkeys were awesome!" Puck said as they left the theater. "Did you see the way they climbed upside down and jumped around those scaffolds? They were like acrobats or something."

Kurt chuckled. "We just saw the most amazing show ever and that's what you liked best?"

Puck shrugged. "The music was great and everything, but the story was kinda girly. I mean, it was all about them fighting over that one dude and being friends and stuff. There wasn't even any real fighting. The one time I thought things would get interesting, when they were going to torture the dude, they didn't really show anything."

Kurt laughed again. "I'll accept that, I suppose. At least you didn't fall asleep. My dad told me he took my mom to a show when they were first married and he slept through the whole thing. She wouldn't speak to him for days afterward."

"Nah, like I said, the music was pretty awesome," Puck said. "Those chicks really know how to belt it out. That green chick definitely would have gotten slushied every day if she went to McKinley."

"Yeah," Kurt said. "I think that's why I like this show so much. Elphaba is just like me, or any of us glee kids really. She's different and so she takes a lot of shit. Her life doesn't turn out exactly the way she planned, but in the end, she gets the boy and she is able to do some good with Glinda's help."

"I was talking to some lady while you were in the bathroom and she said that the book the show was based on doesn't have a happy ending," Puck said.

"That's why Broadway is so much better," Kurt said with a smile. "We can have happy endings. We don't always get those from movies or books or life. But there aren't very many Broadway shows that don't have a happy ending."

"I like happy endings," Puck said quietly and then stopped to pull Kurt into his arms. He kissed him right in the middle of the sidewalk and neither of them really cared.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

They met up with the rest of the team at the hotel before going out together for dinner. Schue had planned it from the beginning. It was to be a celebration if they won, but instead it was pretty depressing. Kurt couldn't really sympathize with those who were being so melancholy. He'd had a great trip.

Of course, he was quiet and introspective for another reason. The trip was almost over, which meant that he would have to come to a decision soon. He knew that Puck wouldn't press the issue, and he could just go back to the way things were before if that was what he wanted. The problem with that was he was not sure that was what he wanted. He was no longer sure if Blaine was who he wanted.

They all went back to the hotel after dinner. They had to leave for the airport at an ungodly hour of the morning and they all still had to pack. Puck just tossed his stuff into his duffle, but Kurt had a lot to organize. He was the last of the boys still awake when he finally finished his skin care routine and was ready to climb into whichever bed still had room.

Except he wasn't the only one still up. As soon as he exited the bathroom, Puck was there, wearing only his sweatpants and holding the key card. He held up a finger to Kurt's lips and then led him out of the room quietly. They went back to the stairwell they had used the other day.

"I don't know what you're going to decide," Puck said. "But there's a chance that this will be my last chance to kiss you. If it is I don't want to let it slip away." He didn't wait for Kurt to respond. He simply took him into his arms and kissed him.

There was no keeping things slow and easy this time. This time there was a desperate hunger in both of them. When Puck pressed his body against Kurt's, Kurt wrapped his leg around his waist to let them get closer. Puck lifted his other leg and soon, they were pressing and thrusting urgently, seeking a release from the building pressure within them. When breathing became a problem, kisses were temporarily abandoned in favor of nibbles and licks and kisses along necks and shoulders. But before they reached the pinnacle, Puck took Kurt's mouth once again so when he came, he swallowed Kurt's cries of pleasure even as he reached his own climax.

The echo of their harsh breaths resounded through the stairwell as they slowly kissed and stroked and nuzzled back to a state of normalcy.

Puck let Kurt's feet return to the ground, but he held his face tenderly between his hands. "I've not been real good with this relationship shit in the past. I know that. I know I'm not a safe bet like Blaine; I'm a huge risk. I know I'm not the kind of guy your dad wants for you. But I also know I could fall in love with you so easily."

Kurt rested his forehead against Puck's. "I know. Me too."

"But you need to think about this," Puck said. "You need to see Blaine and make a choice. I'm not…" He took a deep breath. "I wouldn't be happy if you chose him, but I'd respect your choice."

Kurt swallowed hard and nodded. He kissed Puck one last time and he knew that it was a goodbye of sorts. It was the end of this little interlude and, for some reason, that thought brought tears to his eyes. He stepped away and brushed the tears away.

"We should go clean up," Kurt finally said. "I don't know about you, but I don't relish the thought of sleeping with soiled pajamas."

Puck chuckled and kissed Kurt's temple before leading the way back to the room.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Blaine returned from his audition excited. He had gotten the job. That meant that Blaine would be even further away from Lima than usual. It should have been disappointing, but instead Kurt felt relief. A part of him felt guilty for the things he had done with Puck in New York, and that played a part in his relief. But a larger part didn't feel bad at all about what he had done because what he had shared with Puck, while short, was enlightening.

Puck was not the man Kurt had always assumed. He knew that the boy had been changed with Beth's birth and subsequent adoption. His priorities seemed to have shifted and he had displayed a deeper capacity for emotions than Kurt would have attributed to his tormenter in years past. And they had more in common than Kurt had imagined. They both liked classic muscle cars, they both liked to cook (who knew that the resident badass was actually a budding chef?), and they both loved music of all kinds. The differences they had were enough to keep them from being bored. And Kurt found that Puck wasn't as dumb as he let people believe; he just had an aversion to school and authority figures. His test scores were always pretty high.

In other words, there was more to Puck than a hot body and the knowledge of how to use it. And there was more between them than the passion they had shared in that stairwell in New York.

"Hey, don't look so down," Blaine said. He reached across the table at Breadstix and touched Kurt's cheek. "It will only be a couple months."

Kurt gave a self-deprecating laugh. If only that was his concern. "Blaine, there's something that's been on my mind for a while now, and I think maybe we should talk about it."

Blaine frowned and let his hand fall to the table. Kurt immediately covered it with his own. "What's the matter?"

"I love you, you know that," Kurt said. "And I know you love me. But do you ever wonder…"

"Wonder what?" Blaine encouraged. He was wearing that super understanding look on his face and it just made all this harder to say.

"Have you ever wondered why it's so easy to walk away at the end of the night," Kurt said quietly. "Why we aren't fighting the overwhelming desire to be together every second of the day. Why we don't… why it's been so easy to keep our physical relationship on such a safe level?"

Blaine pulled his hand away from Kurt and his face took on a wounded look. "What are you really saying Kurt?"

Kurt took a deep breath and looked at Blaine in the eye. "You are my best friend, Blaine. I love you. I do. And I don't want to hurt you. I just…"

"You aren't in love with me," Blaine finished. There were tears in his eyes. "I don't know what to say to that."

"Blaine, you have to know how sorry I am," Kurt said and there were tears in his eyes too.

"Is there… is there someone else?" Blaine asked quietly.

Kurt flushed. "I think so."

"What does that mean?" Blaine asked impatiently.

"It means that something happened in New York," Kurt said. "And at first it was a shock—"

"At first?"

"—but then, it was by choice," Kurt finished. "I'm so sorry."

"You want him," Blaine said quietly.

Kurt nodded and stared at his hands playing with the napkin on the table. "I do."

Blaine sighed and leaned back in his seat. "A part of me wants to get up and storm out of here and never speak to you again."

"Oh god," Kurt sobbed. "I'm sorry. Please don't do that."

Blaine reached out and stopped Kurt from shredding the napkin any further. "But another part of me knows that you're right. That spark that should make everything light up and burn with passion just isn't there." He squeezed Kurt's hand. "Tell me what happened?"

Kurt wiped the tears from his cheeks and took a drink of his soda before saying, "Do you remember that text the first day? The one about sucking cock?" Kurt flushed with embarrassment, but Blaine smiled and nodded. "Well, that was Puck."

For the next hour, Kurt told Blaine everything. Blaine listened and asked questions and was a lot more sympathetic than Kurt could have ever hoped he would be.

"So he said he could fall in love with you?" Blaine asked. "It's hard to think of Puck saying anything like that."

"I know," Kurt said. "It's even harder to imagine his being interested in a guy in the first place."

Blaine shrugged. "I don't know. You said when he was listing relationships, he skipped one. It's possible you aren't the first guy he's had feelings for. I mean, how much do you know about his life before he started in glee?"

"Not much," Kurt admitted. He stared at Blaine. "You are being way too good about all this."

"I know," Blaine said. "I am the perfect boyfriend. Too bad no one wants perfect."

Kurt took his hands in his and said, "That's not true. You are going to meet someone who is absolutely perfect for you, and there will be fireworks and sparks galore when he kisses you. Who knows, maybe he'll be running the cotton candy machine at Six Flags this summer."

Blaine chuckled. "You ready to go? I promised your dad I wouldn't keep you out late. It is a Sunday and you still have school tomorrow."

"Ugh, don't remind me," Kurt said as he stood up. "The last week of school is always the worst. Everyone thinks the rules no longer apply, so slushies abound. I've taken to wearing my oldest rattiest clothes on the last week because anything I wear is going to get ruined."

The drive back to Kurt's house was short and soon they were saying their goodbyes. "I'm going to miss you."

"I know," Blaine said. "You're my best friend too, you know. And I know that you're going to be spending tons of time with Puck this summer, but… don't forget about me completely, will you?"

"I won't," Kurt promised and pressed a kiss to Blaine's cheek. "I love you."

"I know," Blaine said with a teasing smile. "Now get out. I still have to get home tonight."

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Kurt was dressed in a pair of green jeans so old that they were almost worn through in several areas, and an old white jacket that he had been meaning to send to the Goodwill for a while. Both were probably a little small for him, but he wouldn't worry about having to throw them away after they got multiple slushies in one day.

"Damn, Princess, you look different," Puck said as he joined him on his walk from the parking lot to the front doors of the school.

Kurt rolled his eyes. "I will have you know that I refuse to wear anything nice on the last days of school. Especially when I know that the slushie wars will be particularly brutal."

"I'm surprised you came at all," Puck said. "I mean, everyone get slushied this week, even the jocks. I considered not showing. That corn syrup stings the eyes, you know."

"I do know," Kurt agreed. "So why did you come?"

Puck gave Kurt a sidelong look. "Because I wanted to see you."

Kurt stopped and pulled Puck off the main walkway so they were away from the other students heading for school. "I told Blaine everything last night."

Puck blinked a few times. "Everything?"

"Yeah," Kurt confirmed. "He was… more understanding than I would have been."

Puck rolled his eyes. "I don't get that guy."

"Well, don't question it too much," Kurt said. "He's actually okay with everything and wants to hear details."

Puck smirked. "What sort of details?" He pulled Kurt closer to him by his belt loops.

Kurt smiled back. "Not those sorts of details. Details about how you react to my decision. Details about whether or not we tell any of the others. Details about how they react if we do…"

"You haven't said what you decided," Puck pointed out, though he pulled Kurt even closer until they were only a breath apart.

"I thought that was pretty obvious," Kurt said. "But if you need me to spell it out for you, I chose you."

Puck's hand moved to Kurt's neck and pulled him forward. "Good." And then they were kissing and neither really cared that they were in full view of everyone entering the school. It was only when the first slushie hit that they broke apart.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

"White Boy!" Mercedes yelled as she approached Kurt's locker between classes. It was the first time she had seen him all day and sure enough, Puck was standing right beside him. "Tell me that you didn't do what the whole school is sayin' you did!"

"If they are saying I kissed Noah in front of the school this morning, I can't deny it," Kurt said calmly as he exchanged one set of books for another.

"I blame you," Mercedes growled at Puck. "I don't know what you did to him, but you better knock it off so we can fix this."

"There's nothing to fix," Kurt told her. "Blaine and I split last night. He knows about Puck. We're still friends. And Noah and I are…" He looked at Puck. "What are we exactly?"

"Boyfriends," Puck said with a smirk to Mercedes. He leaned down and kissed Kurt. "I gotta bolt or I'm gonna be late for shop class and I actually like that class."

When he was gone, Kurt turned back to Mercedes who was glaring at him. "I promise I will explain everything at lunch. Okay?"

"This had better be good," Mercedes said, not totally appeased yet. Then she glanced slyly at Kurt. "Tell me, how's his kissing?"

"Definitely a ten out of ten," Kurt said with a sappy sigh. "Plus an extra two points because he's just so beautiful. Have you ever really looked at his eyes?"

"Good lord, you have it bad," Mercedes said. "Let's get to class. You can moon over your new boyfriend later."

**PKPKPKPKPK**

Puck was sitting at the glee table when Kurt and Mercedes arrived in the cafeteria. It was actually pretty amusing because everyone was staring at him, including all the other glee kids. Puck never sat at their table. He was usually with the jocks or off getting into trouble during lunch. By then, they had all heard the rumors about Puck and Kurt, but none of them really knew what to think. So when Kurt took the seat beside Puck and kissed his cheek before starting on his lunch, they were all in shock.

"How was your morning, Princess?" Puck asked. "Anyone give you a hard time?"

"Nothing more than usual," Kurt shrugged.

"Um…" Finn was standing behind Mercedes chair on the other side of the table from the couple. "What… what are you guys doing?"

Kurt looked at his tray and then back up at Finn. "Eating lunch."

Finn began to hem and haw so Mercedes pulled him into the seat next to her. "Shut up and Kurt will explain all. Won't you White Boy?"

There was an unveiled threat in her words that made Kurt laugh. "Of course." So between bites of food, and with frequent interjections from Puck and questions from the other ten glee kids, the story was revealed.

"So let me get this straight," Rachel said. "You cheated on Blaine, told him about it, and then dumped him and not only has he forgiven you, but he's actually waiting to hear how everyone else reacts?"

"I know," Puck said. "I thought it was pretty crazy too." He turned to Kurt. "You ever cheat on me, I won't be that forgiving, and I'll probably have to kill whoever the guy is."

"Duly noted," Kurt said warily. "Anyway. Blaine understood that we're better as friends. So yeah, he accepted it."

"Burt's gonna flip," Finn said.

"Which is why we aren't going to tell my dad anything yet," Kurt said. "We're going to give him a week or two to get used to the idea that Blaine and I broke up and then I'll tell him about Noah. And if you screw that up Finn, I'm going to do something very bad to that collection of you-know-whats you keep you-know-where. And then I'll tell your mom about what you did last month when you were supposed to be working on that science project."

"Now I wanna know what Finn did and what kind of collection he's hiding," Puck said. The others all agreed with him, but Kurt and Finn just shared a long look before Finn sighed and agreed to keep his mouth shut.

**PKPKPKPKPK**

"I'm still pissed you didn't tell me anything," Mercedes said as they walked to the final glee meeting of the year. "But I suppose that taking you to the show and everything was pretty nice."

"You know," Kurt said. "You didn't spend a whole lot of time with the rest of the group in New York. What were you up to?"

Mercedes opened and closed her mouth a few times before huffing. "None of your business."

"Oooh," Kurt squealed. "I do believe you are hiding something. And you know I'm going to figure it out. Let's see… the night Puck and I went to dinner, you stayed at the hotel… and only one other person was unaccounted for. And then the coffee shop… oh girl, you are so caught. I will expect a full explanation."

"I… we…"

"When you're ready," Kurt shrugged. "Until then, I know nothing, okay?"

Mercedes sighed. "Thanks."

They walked into the choir room and Kurt found Puck right away. A quick kiss in greeting and then they were all talking about the trip and their plans of the summer and it was fun and chaos and the pain of losing had lost its sting. When Mr. Schue came in with their tiny 12th place trophy they all laughed.

Kurt turned to look at Puck, who was laughing about something that Finn had told him. Kurt knew he wasn't ready to declare his love for the other boy, but he was pretty sure it wouldn't be long before he was. There was no hesitation at all when it came to Kurt's feelings for Noah Puckerman; everything was right there in the open—passion, tenderness, affection, friendship and respect all wrapped in one beautiful package—and Kurt couldn't be happier.

**The End**

* For those unfamiliar with the Theater District in Manhattan, Schubert Alley is actually a rather pleasant and well lit cut-through between 44th and 45th streets. It has a small little souvenir shop and is lined with all the current shows' posters. Junior's Restaurant (one of my personal favorites) is on one side of the alley and two theaters are on the other. In addition, there are no less than five other theaters within a block of that alley and it is less than half a block from Times Square. It's kind of the heart of the theater district.

**A/N:** Well, that is my first completed Puck/Kurt fic, though not the first I have started. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Jules


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